Royal Bangs : Flux Outside

Interest in Royal Bangs is natural for a drummer like The Black Keys’ Patrick Carney, given the heaving percussion that enlivens every track on Flux Outside, the Knoxville, Tennessee, band’s third release.

Carney discovered Royal Bang’s after hearing their first album, We Breed Champions (2008), which he re-released on his own Audio Eagle Records. Since then, Royal Bangs – Sam Stratton, Ryan Schaefer, and Chris Rusk – haven’t slowed a bit, following up their debut with Let it Beep (2009), and now delivering the vibrant Flux Outside.

From the crashing introduction of “Grass Helmet” to the jubilant “Loosly Truthing,” the band pumps out percussive grooves that are frenetic and joyful, with Schaefer’s vocals solidly at the forefront, the instrumentation coalescing around his quick quips. The rhythms emerge through the staccato riffing and lockstep drumming that frequently flirt with chaos.

Flux Outside is at the forefront of a string of solid records by Royal Bangs, a band that promises to continue making music that more than a drummer can love.